My DIY film/writing school

Story Chapter 17: Characters

The writer is a mind worm, burrowing into a character to discover his aspects, his potential, then create an event geared to his unique nature, then create an event geared to his unique nature - the precise happening needed to send him on a quest that reaches the limits of his being.

TRUE CHARACTER can only be expressed through choice in dilemma. How the person chooses to act under pressure is who he is - the greater the pressure, the truer and deeper the choice to character.

Desire, Motivation - avoid mono-explanations for behaviour.

Dimension means contradiction. That makes it interesting! E.g. someone who wants glory, but they also want to be very private.

Protagonist is the sun, other characters are planets.

Don't cause false anticipation making bit parts more interesting than necessary.

3 tips on writing characters for the screen:

1. Leave room for the actors - the actor brings a character to life from the subtext out.
2. Fall in love with all your characters - embrace all your creations, especially the bad people. No one thinks they themselves are a bad person.
3. Character is self-knowledge. You wrote it, you're in it somewhere.

posted by Simon @ 3:18 pm